Beginnings Of The Wanderer
by WandereroftheWastes88
Summary: The first steps of the long and difficult road that the Lone Wanderer must walk. Stops at Project Purity; Male LW; Good Karma; R&R please! First Part of a trilogy (maybe more)
1. Out of Vault 101

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own FALLOUT 3 or any of the characters mentioned. Have a nice day.**

His eyes struggled to adjust to the sun when he took his first steps out of the vault. He was wearing a slightly torn Vault 101 jumpsuit and carried a baseball bat and a 10mm pistol.

He had just begun to be able to see when he spotted something. A pinkish dog-sized thing was heading towards him. "What the hell is that thing?" he asked. As it came closer and he could hear it's snuffles and snorts clearer, he cautiously raised the bat. "Only if it tries to bite me", he thought to himself. As it did exactly that, he swung, putting the whole force of his body into the swing, which hit it's mark and crushed the skull of the rat-mole thing.

After admiring his work a bit, he scanned the horizon. He saw what looked to be a pile of junk. No wait, it looked like somebody had built it. "That must be Megaton, that city from the Overseer's terminal", he realized, "Dad must have stopped there!"

After a short walk, he found what seemed to be an entrance. At least, it had a guard on top with a rifle and a robot guarding it. There was also an Airplane's engine right below the sniper's nest. But he could see no gate or anything...

"Hey guy up there!"

The guard looked in shock. "A Vaultie? From 101? Christ alive, more?"

Thomas pondered that a bit, but then proceeded to ask, "So, can you let me in?"

"Why are you here? State your business here."

"Well, I'm looking for my father. He came from the Vault too."

"So he was that other Vault guy that I let in. Ok kid, you seem nice. If you stir up any trouble though, I will make sure you leave here without a skull or the majority of your brain matter. Got it?"

"Loud and clear, uh, Rifleguy!" The "Rifleguy" looked kinda offended at that, and yelled out, "NEVER CALL ME THAT AGAIN. The name is Stockholm. Welcome to Megaton," said Stockholm, pressing a button that was out of Thomas' sight.

Wait... How does it open? Maybe that engine cause a part of wall to- Yup. Sure enough, the engine that was resting on top of the entrance turned on and pulled two sections of the of the scrap metal walls .

"Time to find Dad…"

* * *

><p>As the curious 19 year old went into the rudimentary gate, he was greeted by a dark skinned man with a smile on his face, an assault rifle of Chinese origin on his back, and a star pinned to his duster.<p>

"Name's Lucas Simms, town Sheriff. And mayor too, when the need arises. I don't know why boy, but I like you. What is your name?"

"…Uhhh… I don't like to give it out to any random person I meet… No offence….", he said meekly.

"Boy, if there is anyone not to trust here in Megaton, it's Moriarty."

"Moriarty? Who is he?"

"Owner of the local bar."

"…Think that is where a person passing through would go?"

"Possibly.", said the grizzled Sheriff.

The teen though for a moment and decided that he would go there later. He was thirsty at the moment. "So, anywhere I can get some water?"

"Well, you can drink from the bomb pit in the center of town or the toilets in the public bathrooms if you are really desperate. They taste about the same!", said Simms, bursting into laughter.

"A bomb? Nuclear?" asked Thomas, not really getting the joke, as he has never had bomb-pit water.

"Yep. Been here since Megaton has been started. As long as nobody, uh, shoots it or anything, we SHOULD be fine…", said Simms with a worried look on his face.

The kid thought for a moment. He saw how nervous the Sheriff was about that bomb. He thought for a moment. "How about, eerrr… I defuse the bomb?"

Lucas Simms looked at him incredulously. "Why would you do that? What's your price kid?"

"The satisfaction of knowing the people of this town can sleep in peace, without having to worry about a literal time bomb in their backyards.", he said, completely honest and feeling his good nature taking over.

He was regretting that decision and his good nature 5 minutes later when he was sitting in an irradiated pool in front of previously said bomb. What the hell was he THINKING! Oh wait, he wasn't thinking! Not really! Thomas sighed, running his hand through his blonde hair. Well, he made a promise, and he had to keep it. He sighed. He thought back to the long days in Mr. Brotch's class learning about the Great War. The one and _only_ topic Butch paid attention for (besides anatomy). He suddenly remembered how Chinese bombs worked. He remembered something about fission and "the gun method" and thought for a moment. He then opened up a hold in the bomb itself, with the help of some sort of miniature saw Simms had lent him, and then proceeded to remove the explosive that would start the reaction, avoiding anything that would set it off. He didn't touch the radioactive….thing in the middle for fear he would turn into that very, _very_ poor bastard from the G.O.A.T. Ahhh, the G.O.A.T. Just thinking about it made him want to go up to a scientist and stick a Quantum Harmonizer into their Photon Resonation Chamber, all while saying something resembling "Yeah? Well, up your's too, buddy!"

…Damn, he needed sleep.

His now sweaty blond hair glinting in the setting sun, he returned to a thankful Simms.

"You saved the citizens of this town, and don't even take a reward? Hell, why don't you move in!", said the Sheriff, who had clearly earned some respect for this kid.

"Well," replied the kid, " you guys are lucky that I was the one who paid attention in class." That had them both laughing. He suddenly felt tired. "I'm going to catch some shut-eye. Thanks for everything."

"No problem. Now, as I said before, I need sleep."

**Hello readers!**

**You see, I was tired of seeing Lone Wanderers who were total badasses, but never knowing how they got that way. This will show how a little skinny Vaultie is formed into the Savior of the Wasteland.**

**Yes, I am a sort of amateur writer. And yes, the "Rat-Mole" thing is a Mole Rat. **

**EDIT: Dont worry, anyone who just randomly stumbled upon this and thought that the whole thing will suck. It WILL get better. Just keep reading, and at the time of writing this message, I more than halfway through Chapter 9, and I am churning out greatness faster than *insert fast object here***

**EDIT: **Consolidated chapters 1-3. All three were way too short.****


	2. Good Evening sir!

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN FALLOUT 3 OR ANYTHING IN IT. DON'T SUE.**

**Also, I know I make short chapters. This will be one of the last. I promise the next one will be long, and that he will get a name. His title in fact. The Lone Wanderer. It is also going to be filled with fighting. So keep checking in. And please review and favorite.**

As the boy was at his door, he already had his keychain out. It had about 3 keys, 2 of them from Vault 101, and the other one was the key to his new residence. But which one? He stared, wide eyed at the keychain. Jesus H. Christ, he was the most forgetful person he knew.

He got a feeling in his gut. In the dark, he felt eyes; cold, cold eyes watching him; piercing through his leather jumpsuit and skin. He looked around. Nobody there. His heart started pounding. He turned and, in a stroke of luck, chose a random key which happened to be the right one, and jammed it into the lock. He turned it to the right, opened the door, and quickly slid in. He locked it immediately. His heart was still pounding. He looked around. A medium sized room. Sparsely furnished, with only a couple of lockers, a Bobblehead-holder, a few shelves, a beaten-up old fried, and a staircase. His heart started to stop sounding like an Indian drum.

He sighed. How was he going to find Dad if he was afraid of his own sha-

"Good evening sir!"

"GAH FUCK! WHO ARE YOU!" The terrified boy was looking at some sort of robot, propelled by an engine on the bottom, and that had three arms. He felt a wave of déjà vu hit him. Where had he seen one of those before.

Then it hit him. Andy. The Vault's Mister Handy, basically a robotic butler that has a personal vendetta against cakes.

"Who are you I said?"

"I am Wadsworth, your personal, uhh, how do you say, robotic butler. I came with the house."

"Really? Well nice to meet you Wadsworth!"

"Nice to meet you master!"

"Call me…. Call me Thomas…"

"Ok Master!"

The Bo- ahem- Thomas groaned. "Nevermind about the call-me-Thomas thing."

"Ok Master! Would you like a drink?"

Thomas thought for a moment. He was parched...

"Have any water? Clean water?"

"Certainly sir!"

"OH GOD THANK YOU!" And with that, the skinny boy gulped down the bottle with the speed of a llama. After he was done, he thanked the robot and walked up the stairs. He made a mental note of witch ones squeaked: all of them.

He went into the bedroom, got on the surprisingly comfy bed, and let the folds of sleep envelope him.

**Nice chapter, eh? I'm assuming you guys are hungry for some action in the next chapter, right? Or some 200 year old Salisbury Steak? Not news. That's for Three Dog (Bow Wow). Who will be coming up. In a bit.**

**Note to self: Never let robot butlers near my birthday cakes.**


	3. Turn Around, Very Slowly

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN FALLOUT 3, OR ANY CHARACTERS OR PLACES OR WHATNOT IN IT. ALSO, BETHSEDA ROCKS.**

**Anyway, this chapter is going to be the one with the first hint of combat. Notice how I said hint. Methinks you are going to enjoy this one.**

The boy from Vault 101 felt himself coming out of la la land. He opened his eyes, his vision partially obscured by his blond hair. He groaned. Dad was sure to wake him up soon…

Dad. Dad… Dad!

He jolted awake, remembering the situation he was in. His father had left the Vault, he left the Vault, and he had just diffused a NUKE. He was starting to look at the time when he was interrupted by a certain robotic butler saying, "It is 5:48 A.M., Master Thomas!"

He replied, "Thanks Wadsworth. Can I have some more water?"

"Certainly sir!"

After Thomas gulped it down, a question popped into his mind. "Say, where do you get this water Wadsworth?" The butler replied, "I have condensation collectors that… well, I am assuming you know what they do."

"How about you explain it anyway. I need something to put me back to sleep." As the robot started to explain he cut him off, saying, "It was a joke Wadsworth.".

After he got out of bed, he walked over to the balcony. Jeez, living in this home would take some getting used to…

He walked down the creaky steps and went out the door, saying good bye to Wadsworth as he went. He was completely unaware of the reception waiting to greet him outside...

As he turned his head, a gruff voice greeted him harshly, saying, "Turn around slowly, hands up. You really thought you could just go around doing the things you do? Huh punk? Our employer don;t like punks!"

As Thomas did what he was instructed, he saw 5 grizzled men wearing painted Combat Armor, with some sort of symbol on the chestplate. It looked like someone had wrote it with chalk.

"Look fellas, you have the wrong guy…", Thomas said, hopeing he was right. He had been in the Wasteland a DAY, and someone was already pointing a gun at him.

"Oh, so I guess some OTHER Vault asshole with blond hair diffused the bomb!" How was he ever going to survive to find Dad...

Thomas was about to say something when he caught the eye of a passerby. Well, literally, the eye. The other one had an eye-patch. The man nodded.

"Hey fellas. What are you doin' to that kid?"

As the mercenaries turned around, the man whipped out his revolver and killed them on the rudimentary catwalk, with the kid they were about to kill stareing in awe. The 5 gunshots rang out throught the town.

Thomas thanked his savior. He replied, "No problem. You saved our town. We have t look out for each other, you dig? By the way, the name's Billy Creel. Yours?"

"T-thomas…", he stammered.

"Nice to meet you kid. So, do you think you could've taken them on by yourself if they hadn't caught you unawares?"

"With a BB gun and a half broken pistol? Ha! I don't think so." His heart was racing again.

"Well, I'm gunna let you take their stuff. They don't need it anymore, but you sure do."

Thomas was mortified. "Isn't that a crime against nature or something?"

"It's the way of the Wastes kid. Besides, their armor could fetch a nice profit at Moria's. Their weapons and ammo however, you should keep. Keep the ones you don't use at your house."

"Really? Thanks! I guess…"

"No problem. See ya around kid. Also, if you see Maggie running around, tell her and Harden Simms not to get into trouble."

"Maggie?"

"Oh, my daughter. I saved her 2 years ago from raiders. I decided to bring her to Megaton, saw that THEY were being attacked by Raiders, helped to fend them off, and earned a house of one of the people who died."

"Wow.", said Thomas in awe.

"Well, see ya later kid!", said Billy as he walked away.

Thomas started right away on the task of taking their weapons. One had some sort of Lazer Rifle with 40 or so cells, another sporting a military grade knife and a Mohawk, another carrying a .44 caliber revolver with 5 bullets, and the last two carrying R91 Assault Rifles, the standard issue firearm for the U.S. Military and National Guard at the time of the Great War. He found a total of 4 clips for it. He went back inside, put everything besides the two R91s in the locker near the door (which he decided would be the Weapon Locker) then went outside, removed their armor, and put all but one in the locker across the room; his new Armor locker. The other Combat Armor he would sell to that Moria person Billy mentioned.

He asked Wadsworth for another bottle of water, and left his house to sell the armor and find his father.

**Phew! That took… 3 or so hours to make! Billy Creel will be mentioned in later chapters. He is one of the best people in Megaton. He has a Magnum! The first person to have it! Also, he saved a kids life! Two kids lives now. Anyway, review and favorite.**


	4. A Mere 50 caps

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN FALLOUT 3 OR THE RIGHTS TO IT. BETHSEDA DOES. AND THEY ARE THE BEST. DON'T SUE. Or else… Uhh… I will counter sue! AND LOSE!**

**Yes, this is my first story. Thanks to everyone for critiquing my work. Especially CC. He is the best author. Ever. Also, at the time of writing this, my internet isn't working. After I am done I will fix the problem.**

Thomas decided to explore the town a little. The shop that Moira person ran wasn't open yet, and he had to pass the time. He walked around slowly, talking in what details he missed when he first came in.

The town had multiple ramps and catwalks. Several pipes ran through the town, and several of them were leaking. Someone should fix that, but nobody was. Maybe he would when he was bored. Thomas started thinking about the Vault. How did people outside of vaults survive? Why were people allowed outside the Vault? Why did the overseer lie?

Why did his father leave?

He didn't know the answer to that question. He looked at the little device on his wrist while his legs kept wandering like a machine. 8:00. Moira's shop should be open by now. He stopped and looked up from his Pip Boy. He found himself right in front of the building Billy said was Moria's. Thomas could tell it used to be part of an airplane. It proudly said "Craterside Supply". Fitting name, considering the location.

He opened the door. "Hello?", he called out. A high pitched voice greeted him. "Oh, come in come in! What can I do for you?"

"Uh, a man named Billy Creel said this is where I can make some money… Which I need…" Thomas stepped in, carrying the suit of armor on his shoulder.

"Well, do you have anything to sell me?" A red-haired woman clad in a Robco jumpsuit walked through a side door, throwing the broom in her hands to the side.

"I have this combat armor," he said, showing the armor to her.

She clapped her hands. "Yay! I've been needing a suit of that for a project of mine!"

"So, what will you pay for it?" Thomas needed money.

"Hmmm… In this condition… 250 caps."

So that was the currency around here...Thomas thought about how much a cap was worth. 250 bottles of soda opened and drank. Was that worth a suit of Military Grade Combat armor in good condition?

"That's a little cheap, methinks. 325."

"275."

"Comon Moria, my father has gone missing, I haven't a cap in the world, and here I am, haggling for a mere 50 caps."

"…Alright. We'll meet in the middle. 300." She stuck out her hand, and Thomas shook it and put the armor on the counter.

"You know, you could make a good business man if you keep being like that."

"Thanks, but I doubt it. I'm probably going to end up losing all this money anyway." Thomas did not feel like a shrewd person. He was surprised he didn't just give it to her!

"Here's you caps!"

"Thanks.", he said as he took the bag of bottlecaps, hearing them jingle. He felt a bit bad though. His good nature was telling him that he had been a dick, while logic was telling him it was fair. Logic was usually right...

"Hey, need any help with anything? Protecting your wares for a day or two? I feel that I might have gotten the better end of the deal."

"Aww, no thanks dear. I have… um… Oh what is his name again… The Mercenary for that!"

"And where is that mercenary right now?"

"Lunch break." Her eyes lit up. "Wait! There IS something else you can do! Tell me this: You came from a vault, no? What do you think of the Wasteland?"

Thomas tried to think of something funny to say. "Well, it's been _interesting_, to say the least. That big room, the "out side"? I can't even see the ceiling!"

"Ha! You should see how hard it is to replace that big light bulb up there too. Say, that's a great idea! I'll start the book off with a joke!"

"…A book? What book?", said Thomas, suddenly intrigued. Anything to do with books, he liked. Unless it was burning them.

"It's going to be a Wasteland survival guide, and named just that. Just think about it; a book that will save hundreds, even thousands of lives! Of course, I can't do all the experiments myself…"

Thomas felt his good nature getting the better of him. "What do you need done?"

* * *

><p>Ten minutes later, he was standing in the irradated pool around the bomb he had diffused yesterday, drinking the water and muttering, "Damn my good nature!", over and over again, with a crowd forming. He looked at his Pip Boy. 236 rads. Hmm. He got this far. Why not go farther? The Bible said something about when someone asks you for 1 mile, you should go 2. Or 800 in this case. And rads, not miles. And he did just that.<p>

He burst into Craterside Supply feeling like he was about to barf his guts out, and not at all like Jesus. The smell didn't make it better. Was that sulfur? "Oh don't mind me; I was just testing some chemicals; completely harmless!", said Moria Brown. "So, how do you feel?"

"Ungh… Uh… Just.. Just great… ha…ha… Fine... Never better!", he said with a not-very-convincing smile on his face.

He then hit the ground, aware of nothing but pain and nausea.

Thomas blacked out.

* * *

><p><strong>How'd you like that chapter, huh? Hey, my internet fixed itself! WOO!<strong>

**Anyway, the LW is a devout Christain. I mean, comon! A major part of the game is a Biblical passage! **

**Also, (Random thought here) When Arthur Maxson says,"It was just a flesh wound" when he shot Sarah, I felt inclined to believe that Sarah Lyons had no arms or legs left. If you got that joke, review. Or don't. I'm not one of those people.**

**Good night.**

**EDIT: 12/11/2012**

**I've cleaned this chapter up a bit and added a bit. Enjoy.**


	5. Snooping around

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN FALLOUT 3 OR ANYTHING ASSOCIATED WITH IT. BETHSEDA DOES. AND THE ROCK. DON'T SUE.**

**This chapter is… well, where the LW finds… you will find out later.**

Thomas' eyes fluttered open. Uhg. Where was he?

He sat up. He was in Moira's shop. He could see through the holes in the walls that it was dark out. He checked his Pip Boy. 1:26 A.M. He felt like crap. Wait a minute… What was he doing before…

He franticly checked his Pip Boy again. He looked at the gauge in the corner of it. It was at… zero. Huh. His radiation had… gone away. He decided to get up. He did so carefully, as not to disturb anybody else in the store. He wanted to just look around a bit.

He walked slowly, on the balls of his feet, out the door and into the main room. He was startled by a sudden movement behind him.

He looked. It was the Mercenary. But… Huh. He was asleep. Guess that eliminates any possibility of discovery. Wait… he should still be careful though. If he woke either, they might get suspicious.

He looked behind the counter. Nothing too interesting. A locker and…wait. Something caught his eye. A… holotape! He downloaded it onto his Pip Boy. Wonder what it said. He looked in the "notes" section of the device. It was a recorded message. Hmmm… Should he risk discovery? They might not be too happy about him, uh, copying her holotape.

He started to question why he was doing this. What was the point?

He always had a habit of snooping around. He'd even had the gall to pick the Overseer's door! Well, it was actually a dare from Butch…

He decided to go back to sleep. He snuck back into the old mattress and drifted off to sleep…


	6. Still owing

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN FALLOUT 3 OR ANYTHING TO DO WITH IT. IF I DID, I'D BE RICH. PLEASE DON'T SUE.**

"I think he's waking up!" said a loud and annoying voice. Thomas slowly opened his eyes.

He sat up. He was in a strange room… Wait. No, he was in Craterside Supply, he remembered now. He had got tons of rads, painfully stumbled to Moira's, passed out while trying to keep a straight face, then woke up in the middle of the morning.

"So, how did it feel?" said one Moira Brown as she popped into the doorway.

"Makes me nauseous just thinking about it…"

"Well, can you describe it?"

Thomas sighed and tried to tell it the best he could.

* * *

><p>The door squeaked as a certain Vaultie stepped out of the door and back out into the town. He was wearing something different then before. Moira had given him an armored Vault jumpsuit and some radiation chems for his troubles. Turns out she had cured the radiation with her own formula, but it didn't work out exactly as it was planned to. Whenever he was exposed to radiation, he… healed. Apparently. He did NOT want to test that out. He said that he would take a break from research. He decided to go to Moriarty's Saloon.<p>

He opened the door and was met with the same smell that he encountered- no, faced- when he saved Butch's mother. He looked forward and saw the bartender. He… he seemed to have some sort of… condition. Half his face was missing. He looked like a zombie from one of those old horror films. He realized the guy must get that a lot. He imagined how offensive it would be if someone called him a zombie. Very damn offensive he realized. He decided to ask him where Moriarty was.

"Last I saw him, he was in the bac-,"

"Who's askin' for me?" said a man with a distinct Irish brogue as he stepped out of the back room holding a bottle of beer. "Common, who is-," Once he saw Thomas' face, he dropped the glass. "By god, it's you, isn't it? The little baby boy!"

Thomas was… a bit weirded out. "…I only _just_ left the Vault. How would you know me?" He started to get nervous. Was this the guy who sent those hitmen? No… His gut told him otherwise…..

"Your father went through here about 20 years ago with you and his Brotherhood of Steel friend when he was trying to get into the Vault."

Thomas couldn't believe it. How this man could have seen him before he could not fathom. He was BORN is the Vault! The Irishmen sensed what he was going to say next, and replied, "Ah, the lies we tell to those we love."

"You… are wrong. My father would never lie to me!"

"Well, he left you in the vault, thinking you wouldn't follow him."

Wait a moment… "So, he went through here?"

"Aye."

"Where did he go?"

"Hmm. Sorry kid, but he told me NOT to tell you."

Thomas thought for a moment.

"Look, can't you… Can't you help a fellow Irishmen?"

"You're Irish?"

"My mother was. And don't think that I am not damn proud of it."

"… Alright kid. I'll tell ya, since I haven't seen an Irishmen so proud since your's truly... He went east, into the DC ruins. To GNR, I think. Here, you got a map or anything?"

"My Pip Boy does."

"Alright, it's just about… here." He pushed a point of the map, and a marker appeared. He named it "GNR". "Thanks Moriarty."

"Always willing to help me kin."

"Now how do they say it? Ah yes. May the roof of your house never fall in, and the people below it never fall out." Thomas remembered his Father somewhere…

"Ha! Thanks kido! See ya around!"

Thomas opened the door and walked to his house. It was about 7 PM.

* * *

><p>"Hey Wadsworth, have any water for me?"<p>

"There is 5 bottles for you in the fridge, sir."

"Thank you. Say, do you know where I can get some food and ammo?"

"I believe Craterside Supply could cater to the need of ammo."

"Great, that place…"

"What sir?"

"Bye Wadsworth!" said Thomas as he shut the door and walked out into the catwalk.

Please GOD, PLEASE don't make Moira ask him to do any more research. He at least had to find his Dad first before he risked his life (willingly). Wait, did he even need ammo? He checked the amount he had. He had five clips of 5.56 rounds, or 120 rounds. He had 36 10mm rounds, or 3 clips. He didn't need more ammo. Did he? He felt confidant for once. The weight of the Assault Rife on his shoulder somehow gave him strength… Wait… Nope, the strap was just digging into his shoulder. He moved it a little. That's better, he thought. Still, he had a military grade Assault Rifle. Pretty good of-

He bumped into somebody. "Hey, watch where you're going!"

"Sorry…"

"Jeez kid, relax! I'm joking!" said the person he knocked down. He had a head rap and an eyepatch… He seemed familiar… Billy Creel! The guy who had saved his life!

"So kiddo, what'cha been doing lately?"

"Well, I was about to go out into the Wastes to find my father…"

"Whoa kid, if you go out there, you will die. Any farther then that Vault, you'll be attacked by more then just mole rats!"

"Well, I have to go out there! To find my father!"

"…Wait just a day kid. I'll see what I can do to help."

"Really? You've already saved my life once!"

"Yeah, but you saved the WHOLE TOWN. Even if I owed you for just me and Maggie, I'd still owe you my life! But that's the thing. I'm not counting just me and Maggie. I'm counting the whole town. Which you saved."

"…Ok. Thanks Billy. Appreciate it."

"Hey, no problem."

* * *

><p>The next day, after Thomas had gotten another 3 purified waters from Wadsworth, he decided to go to Craterside Supplies, JUST in case he forgot anything.<p>

As he walked in the door, the familiar, screechy voice greeted him. "Oh hello! How are you feeling?"

"Better, Moira. Thanks for asking. Do you have any 5.56 rounds? Or 10mms?"

"1 cap for each bullet. I have 16 10mms and about… 48 5.56s. And 2 spare clips to hold them!"

"I'll buy the 5.56s. And the clips, I guess." he said as he handed her 48 caps.

"Thank you for your patronage, as they USED to say."

"Thanks Moira. Well, see you later. As they USED to say, have a nice day," said Thomas as he started to walk out the door.

"Wait kid!" said a certain ex-scavenger, stopping Thomas outside the door. "I have decided to go with you, make sure you don't die."

Thomas could hardly believe his ears. "I thought…" Wait... Why was Billy in Craterside?

"Well, due to a certain Moira Brown offering to care for Maggie while I'm gone…"

"Moira? Babysitting Maggie?"

"Is that what you called it in the Vault?"

"Yep. But, are you sure Moira should be the on-"

"Listen Tommy," said Billy seriously, " She _offered_ to help. I'd be an ungrateful prick not to accept it, you know?"

Thomas thought for a moment. "I guess you are right…. But-"

"NO BUTS MISTER! I'M GOING, AND THAT'S THAT!"

Thomas did a mock salute, attempting to defuse the situation. "Yes sir!", he said in a stupid accent.

Billy burst out laughing. "Ha! You're all right kid. Now, do we have..."

**Since you can't get Jericho with good karma, why not get Billy Creel? I mean, he saved a little child from raiders, and then helped fight off MORE raiders who were attacking Megaton!**

**Also, there might be something humorous in later chapters. I don't know.**

**Anyway, have a nice day. Man, I could really go for some Nuka Cola right now…**

"**I've been working on a rail road"**

"**_Every pointless day."_**

"**Ive been working on a railroad"**

"_**While my life gets pissed away"**_

"**Can't you hear the wistle blowing"**

"_**Shatter my dreams in the morn"**_

"**Can't you hear the Captain shouting"**

"_**Wish I was never born"**_


	7. Of Demon Things and Holy Hand Grenades

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN FALLOUT 3 OR ANYTHING TO DO WITH IT. IF I DID, I'D BE RICH. PLEASE DON'T SUE. IF YOU DO, I WILL BE FORCED TO COUNTER-SUE. AND LOSE. SO DON'T SUE. I DON' WANT TO LOSE MONEY. DAMN YOU LAWYERS (NO OFFENCE PEOPLE WHO ARE ACTUALLY LAWYERS)! **

"So kid, you armored up your jumpsuit?" asked Billy Creel.

"Nah. Moira did it for me."

"She is a… nice person, if a bit… eccentric at times." He paused, then changed the subject quickly "So, what happens after we find your pa?"

"Well…" Thomas began. He thought about it. "I'm probably going to help Moira with her experiments. Might give me experience in the wild and wooly wastes, you know?"

"Experiments? Like what?"

"Well, going through a town turned minefield, getting radiation poisoning, et cetera," Thomas said, thinking about how painful the radiation had been after a while.

"Believe it or not, that _does not _surprise me." Billy said with a smirk on his face.

"Really?"

"Well, she is a bit more notorious than you think. Have you talked to the guard in there?" Thomas shook his head. "On break, he either sits around Moriarty's grumbling about how she is going to use him for an experiment or something, or he is jumping off the balcony and breaking his legs."

"Oh," said the recently un-confused teenager, "thanks for the clarification. … Are you weirded out by her too?"

"Hey! Enough of the smack talk about Moira!" Billy yelled. Thomas promptly shut up.

The duo continued walking along an abandoned highway that would lead to some place called the "Citadel" (which was near one of the last standing bridges into the city), each immersed in their own thoughts as they climbed over the old cars, when Thomas suddenly spotted a flash of pink, popping out behind one of the many cars. Another one of those rat-mole things, Thomas realized. "FUCK!" He yelled as he jumped back, oblivious to the fact that it was just a rat and he was armed with a military grade Assault Rifle. Billy sighed, shot it, holstered his .44, and gave Thomas a glare.

"Ummm… Sorry… It's just… I don't know why, but I am just terrified of those things! And spiders…"

"A mole rat? Kid, go fight a Deathclaw, then come back to me and tell me what you think is terrifying, ok?"

Thomas saw another flash of pink in his peripheral vision. Taking it to be another Mole Rat, he pulled out his pistol and shot, hitting the mass of pink.

He didn't hear Billy's hushed "Speak of the _mother fucking _devil…", nor did he see his silent warning through his eyes telling him not to alert this pink creature , to no avail, as the mass of pink turned around. Thomas then saw that is was _not _a rat. This thing was taller than Abe Lincoln, thin, all while standing on a total of two legs. It had horn on its head, and two _very_ deadly looking claws. Thomas' body recognized it as a Deathclaw a split second before his mind did, and his fight or flight reaction told him to fucking _fly like hell._

Ah… Running. If he was getting chased by a freaking demon-thing, he could enjoy madly running down a highway packed full of abandoned nuclear powered cars. Thomas' thoughts ranged from "FUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCK" to "BFG 9000 GOD PLEASE GIVE ME A BFG 9000!"

The adrenaline pumping throughout his body, he spotted a gift from God; _a grenade__ (who brings a grenade with them to work?)_that was just lying on one of the many cars and... Was that a cross painted on it? Oooh, fun! He picked it up, pulled the pin, let the spoon fall and heaved it at the fast-approaching demon-thing with a grunt. It missed it and landed amongst the cars behind it.

The death-thing stopped to get a better glance at what just flew by at its head. The grenade went off, exploding a nuclear reactor in one car, which did the same for all cars around it. Thomas flew backwards due to the massive explosion. He hit a building and fell unconscious to the sound of his Geiger counter ticking….

A man is running down a long, dark corridor. A pink, dog sized rat is giving chase. Suddenly, the rat changes into the thing that Thomas just blew into pieces, which pounces upon the man and –

"AH!" Thomas bolted up, fully awake. He found himself on an overpass over the same highway, next to an open flame and an alert Billy Creel, who was facing away from Thomas. As his eyes slowly adjusted, he could see things more clearly. He was near a factory… Billy was swiveling his head back and forth. Wait…

He blinked. Was that… Was that the Nuka Cola Factory?! Thomas immediately set a marker in his Pip-Boy 3000 for the factory, naming it (what else?) the Nuka Cola Factory. Billy noticed he was awake.

"Hey kiddo! You're finally awake! How ya' feeling?"

"Good! Never felt better… Well, I have actually… And I have a headache…The kind that could put someone in bed for a week… But still! I'm well enough to feel peppy!"

"Well, after an explosion that huge… That's good. Hell, it's amazing! Say, how 'bout you take over watch while I sleep?" Billy said, obviously tired as anyone can be.

"…Ok!"

"Thanks," Billy said as he lay down and (very quickly it seemed) fell asleep. He didn't snore, Thomas' very random teenage mind noted. Maybe he wasn't sleeping… People can fall asleep in 3 seconds… Right? Thomas looked at his wrist. Half past blue leather. Hmmm. Oh shit. Woops.

Thomas then looked at his _left_ wrist and saw the time. 2:00 A.M. _on the dot_. Jesus. When he was knocked out it was… At least 12 hours ago.

_Shit. __Isn't that unhealthy or something?_He ran his hand through his long, blond hair. Damn, he needed to take a shower! And… He didn't know why, but he felt… Naked, in a way. He looked at his Jumpsuit. Nope, he wasn't naked. He felt for his Assault Rifle. Nope, he was armed. But… Hm…

He had a sudden (what seemed like to his still semi-childish mind) epiphany. He needed a hat! Or a headband or…

"A BANDANA! What better way to show badassery then to wear a freaking _bandana_!" the former Vault Dweller yelled out, startling Billy out of his half sleep. "…Badassery, kid?" Billy asked with slight annoyance in his voice.

"Well, yeah! I just killed something vaguely resembling Satan (or a Cyberdemon) with claws!"

"It's called a Deathclaw for a reason, kid."

Thomas blinked. "So _that_ _was_a Deathclaw. I knew it! Well… it was one of the many things I was wildly guessing while running for my life…. But still! I knew it!"

Billy sighed. "Well kid, it's your time to watch, and I'm going to sleep. _Again." __He said with slight disdain__. "_Wake me up when the sun rises."

Thomas looked at his Pip Boy. 2:05 A.M. He set the timer for 6:00 A.M. and proceeded to sweep the area with his eyes. Damn, was it dark…

**Hours later….**

Thomas looked up. The sun had finally risen. He checked the time, which was 5:24. Hmmm. Conflicted on whether to wake up Billy now or wait for the alarm, he did not notice Billy's eyes open, nor did he notice him get up. "Hey kid," said Billy. "Get up. We should start moving now."

Thomas grumbled a bit, but got up. They continued down the highway, with the only sounds were their own footsteps, Thomas' random rants about Spam and Cram, and an occasional gunshot from the distance.

"Hey Billy?" Thomas asked, suddenly changing the subject.

"Yeah?"

"When we were talking about Moira yesterday, why did you get so defensive?" Thomas inquired with a small evil smirk on his face and a larger one in his mind.

"What? I did _not,_" defended Billy.

"Why are you getting so defensive about it now, huh? Do you like her?" Thomas was literally skipping around Billy now.

Billy resisted the urge to punch the childish Vault Dweller to the ground. "Teenagers… God help me…"

"Help you what? Hide your feelings?"

"Kid… I'm _thisclose_ to shooting you in the feet and/or knees. Drop it before—

Thomas gasped. "So it IS true!" He pranced ahead, singing, "Billy and Moira, sitting in a tree…" when he heard a very loud_—_

**AND THAT'S THE SOUND OF A CHAPTER ENDING ABRUPTLY! I understand if you want to murder me. Don't worry though. I'm writing like a _professional_ (Roald Dahl). I once read that, when you are going good, you have to put down your pen so that tomorrow, you feel excited to write. Also, its 3:52 A.M. and writing does NOT help insomnia…**

**Thanks to my wonderful new beta reader, I managed to get this out without embarrassing myself completely! Here's a few comments from her!**

**(On the whole "Lawyers" bit: "Ha!"**

**(On Moira's Guard) "Haha! The poor guy!"**

**(On Thomas' fear of rats and spiders) "Me too, Thomas. Me too."**

**(On Billy's S.L. F-in' J. pimpslap of a rebuke) "Okay, never mind, Billy has a point there."**

**(On Holy Hand Grenade) "ZOMG HOLY FRAG GRENADE!"**

**Also said Thomas was Cheery and Human!**

**Said something about me being sparkly.**

**Oh, and sorry for all the people who have waited for this. My muse just sorta left me for a while. Didn't talk. I was being an angsty teen I guess. Sorry. PLEASE REVIEW. PLEASE. I NEED THE FEEDBACK. MY BETA'S FEEDBACK ISN'T ENOUGH. Thank you.**

**~Thomas**


	8. Pa-pop!

**Hellloooooo, Capital Wasteland! It is I, Three—**

**Oh wait. Never mind. Once again, sorry to everyone who waited for the last chapter. I'll make sure this one is posted relatively quick(ly).**

**Also hope you liked the comments from my beta last chapter! Thank god I got one. **

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN ANYTHING FROM FALLOUT OR MONTY PYTHON. IF I DID, EVERYTHING IN THIS WOULD BE A MOTHERFUCKING MOVIE. A GREAT ONE. DIRECTED BY QUENTIN TARENTINO. IT WOULD BE THE BEST COMEDY OF ALL TIME. I DON'T OWN HIM EITHER. SLAVERY IS ILLEGAL IN AMERICA. SO… SO PLEASE, DON'T SUE. AND IF YOU DO SUE, DON'T SEND NINJA LAWYERS. I'LL GET NIGHTMARES AND SUE YOU FOR RECKLESS ENDANGERMENT. OR SOMETHING. Now, where was I…**

–_PA-PA-PA-POP!_

Thomas instinctively dived behind a piece of fallen building as the dirt around him got kicked up. He heard a man call out, "This is Talon Company! Come out with your hands up! If you're lucky, we will let you live!" He looked. There were the ruins of a building ahead, with a sniper's nest on the only part of the second floor that looked stable and a ramp leading up to it. It looked like most of the building was collapsed. Thomas saw the man approaching him and the sniper, although there were probably more. These were the guys who tried to kill him before. They must've had a contract on his head or something. Damn it, think, Thomas, THINK! Umm... Confusion!

"What if I don't know how to?" he called out, taking out his R-91. He could almost see the bewildered expression on the guy's face.

"What the hell are you—" Thomas spun around the debris, pulled the trigger, and yelled, "DIE YOU CRAZY SHIT EATING BASTARDS!" all while spraying half a clip in the general direction of the commanding voice. The boy fell backwards due to the recoil. He rolled back behind the rock.

"Gunny's down!"

_Well, at least I hit him._

He noticed something on his Pip-boy. It showed 3 red blips behind him. Deducing that they were the mercenaries, he stood up and fired in bursts when one decided to poke their head up. Taking advantage of their caution, Thomas sprinted forward to the closest suitable cover he could find: a wall of sandbags waist high. He dove behind it just as the merc on top of the ruins popped his head out and took a shot. "Ok, what do I do now?" Thomas asked himself. His answer was a few gunshots from behind him and a yell to _Move up_ from Billy. Thomas stood up and was about to oblige when he felt a piercing pain in his left shoulder. He let go of his gun and fell, clutching the wound. So that was what it felt like to get shot. Not that he had been overly curious.

The pain was nigh unbearable. Then the endorphins and adrenaline kicked in. Thomas' mind experienced fear, pity, and fury all at the same time. Not much pain. Mostly fury. He got up, drew his pistol, aimed and placed bullets into the two mercenaries at ground level, and unloaded half a clip into the sniper's cover to make sure he stayed there. Walking up the ramp, he kept the pistol trained on the sniper's perch, waiting for him to come up. "We surrender!" the frightened man yelled out.

"Um… About that…"

"What?"

"I think you meant to say, '_I _surrender'. Ow, damn this hurts" Thomas winced.

"Huh?" The sniper poked his head out from behind the cover. His eyes became the size of grapefruits when he saw his three squad mates, on the ground, not breathing. "Um, I… I surrender!"

Billy ran up. "Nice going kid! What are you going to do with that guy?" Billy motioned towards the sniper. Thomas thought for a bit. Then an idea hit him.

"Hey, can you mark where your headquarters are on a map?"

"Y-yes. Can I have a map?" Thomas showed him his Pip Boy map, which the sniper promptly marked something in the east. "What should I name it?"

"FortBannister. That's what it is called. Don't go there. We already have orders to shoot first unless the approaching is wearing our armor. Super Mutants and stupid Raiders. You understand. Please don't kill me."

"Thank you, Mr. Sniper Man Who Shot Me. Now can you do three more things for me?"

"Like what?"

"Ok," Thomas began, "first, go to FortBannister." A nod from the Sniper. "Second, quit Talon Company. If I see you shoot at me again, I will kill you like I did your friends here." Thomas smirked. "Before you do my second request, go to your Superiors. Tell them…" He paused. Should he tell them not to go after them or…

"Wait, how much was the Bounty of the Vault Kid who disarmed a bomb?"

"One thousand caps and a promotion."

"Tell them Double or nothing." He grinned. "I'm worth more than 1000 caps. In fact, quadruple it or nothing. Got that all?"

"Wait, you really want them trying to kill you?"

"Well, I was thinking that_they_," he pointed to his dead comrades which Billy was searching", could maybe convince them otherwise."

The sniper snorted. "Yeah right. The guy who put the bounty up on you is a very powerful man. He really didn't want that bomb defused."

Thomas shrugged. "Well, sucks for him. Get going please."

The Sniper nodded and started to head east, in the direction of the Nuka Cola factory. Once he was out of sight, Thomas sat down on the ground to nurse his wound. He felt a poke on his right shoulder and looked up, seeing Billy and a medical kit that he handed to Thomas. Thomas opened it and quickly found gauze and tweezers, with which he pulled out the offending bullet and wrapped up the wound. He rolled it a few times and winced in pain. Yep, it still hurt. He opened up the kit again. He found a few stimpacks, took them out, and injected one into his arm, instantly feeling relief. His wound also closed significantly. The power of modern medicine.

Billy saw the relieved expression on the boys face and said, "Damn, you have a fast metabolism!"

"Is that a complement? If it is, then thank you. Hey, can we camp here?"

"No. It's fucking 4 PM. There's still 4 hours until the sun sets, and—

Aw, come on Billy! I just got shot!" Thomas whined.

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because—

"The quicker we go, the quicker you can see your precious Moira? Is that why?"

Billy sighed and reminisced about his teenage years. He hadn't been much better. "Fine."

Thomas bolted up like someone who hadn't just been shot half an hour ago. "YAY! Thank you Billy!" He jumped down from the perch and walked over to some sort of workbench. On it was a crate of frag grenades with more crosses on them. Thomas immediately crammed them into his pockets, all 12 of them. There was a piece of paper in the bottom of the box. "'Count to 5 then throw'? Oh wait, the 5 is crossed out! Count to 3! Ok, that's good to know!"

"What did you say kid? Was it about Moira?" Billy called over a distance.

"You can't know for sure." Thomas laughed then ran off to search another place in the mercenaries' former outpost or camp. Billy sighed. This was going to be a long night.

**And it's done! How do you think it was, readers? Please leave your input in the comments.**

**Oh, and I decided to consolidate all of Chapters 1,2, and 3. That would make this… Chapter 8! YES! That's my favorite number! I made my own day on accident! Hooray! **

**Thanks (in advance teehee) to my beta for betaing. Also, thanks to everyone who has favorited and put this story on alert. I thank ye with all of 'ere kindness in my soul. **

**Also thanks to Radiohead, who got my muse to get off its ass. Their music is the best. **

**(AFTER BETA) So my beta doesn't want me posting her comments, so I should respect her wishes! She is the best beta ever though.**


	9. Ever Kill a Super Mutant?

…**Sorry this took so long, readers. I was in a ****_bit_**** of a slump. I sorta like this girl… A lot… We've been in the same exact classes for two years, and then I don't get ANY with her. So yeah. Too sad to write.**

**Then, about a week ago, I said hi to her when I was running. I feel like a million dollars. I feel amazing just thinking about it. If I start to sing, slap me.**

**Also, that's got my muse going! So, after writing the beginnings of a Half Life fic in only two hours, I decided to start writing this again! So, thank her, I guess, for randomly coming out of a door just as I was running past it, I guess.**

**First is first, so, disclaimer!**

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN FALLOUT, FALLOUT 3, HALF LIFE, OR ANYTHING ELSE IN THIS WORK, BESIDES WHAT HAS COME OUT OF MY ENIGMA OF A MIND. BETHSEDA AND VALVe DO, RESPECTIVELY. WAIT, DID SOMEONE COPYRIGHT THE WORD "MIND"? OH GOD PLEASE NO. I'D BE SUED OUT OF MY—**

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><p><em>Thomas found himself walking on a road. It was night. He didn't know why he was walking. Suddenly, a solitary figure in the distance caught his eye. He called out to the figure, his only reply being the echo of his own voice. He walked faster. Who was this person? Why were they walking towards him? How—<em>

Thomas awoke from his dream. Greeting him was the night sky, an asleep Billy Creel sitting across a dead campfire, and a tremendous pain in his left shoulder. He grunted as he sat up, wondering what his father would do. A figurative lightbulb went off over his head. He got up, trying to ignore the sharp protest from his shoulder, and looked around the camp. He found what he was looking for and sat down. A stimpack. He remembered reading something about how stimpacks, while containing a weaker version of morphine, also had a mix of medicines that accelerated the body's rate of healing dramaticly. The "super" stimpacks also use some fancy nanobot technology, although there were wounds that even the super stimpacks couldn't heal. Pushing aside the nerd thoughts, Thomas jabbed the needle into his arm, instantly replacing the sharp pain with a dull one.

_Wait, wouldn't it take a while for the meds to kick in? Must be a form of the placebo effect. Maybe he could trick his brain into thinking he was Superman! Wait, no, Batman! Superman is a cheater. Like Butch. Or was his name Bush? I forget..._

Ah, the morphine _was_ kicking in. Suddenly feeling very sleepy, Thomas laid down on the hard ground and fell asleep almost instantly, the medicine practically repairing his body while he dreamed of long roads and deathclaw/mole rats.

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><p>In what seemed to only be a few seconds, Thomas found himself awake again. After trying to go back to sleep, he got up and looked at his Pip Boy.<p>

"6:47." He said aloud. He flipped through the different screens in the Pip Boy, a habit developed from long days in the Vault, when the class was being rowdy and Stanley had to take over for Mr. Brotch, who got sick more often than one would think in a Vault. Ah, good times. Or was that the nostalgia talking? Yeah, probably nostalgia. He looked at his shoulder. The wound looked… Better. Only a dull ache remained. After taking a moment to thank both 200 year old medicine and God, he got up.

His dad had left the Vault, what, 5-6 days ago? Well, he hadn't gotten his head blown off (yet). His Father could probably say the same. Not wanting to wait until Dad proved him wrong, Thomas walked over to Billy's sleeping form, and woke him up. After a bit of last minute scavenging that produced a few stimpacks, they were off.

* * *

><p>After a few hours walk, the two had reached what was formally the Pentagon, now named the "Citadel". Considering that it wasn't miles tall and the Headquarters of some oppressive alien régime, Thomas was a bit relieved when Billy pointed it out. To the right, Thomas could make out the Jefferson Memorial.<p>

"So, this is where the 'Brothers of Metal' are?"

Billy shot him a look. "Brother_hood _of _Steel._ Apparently, they helped your Dad with getting to that Vault 20 years ago, so be thankful."

"What do they look like?"

"They wear Power Armor and use energy weapons like laser rifles. They have an abundance of pre war tech. To top it all off, they originated from the remains of the army or something. Skilled as hell. Four words: Don't. Fuck. With. Them."

"Huh. I just assumed they were just another Church of the Atom that worshiped metal."

Billy stopped and looked over in the direction of the memorial. "Look, kid, can you just take the metro all the way to Chevy Chase for me?"

"…Alone?"

Billy nodded. "I've got to make arrangements for our stay in Rivet City, unless you want to sleep on the ground again after getting back from GNR."

Thomas thought for a moment. He had GNR marked on his map. He had to head North, and he would be there. "Wait, where is Rivet City?" Thomas asked, putting down two markers on his map for the Citadel and Jefferson Memorial.

Billy pointed out a spot to him on his map, which Thomas labeled "Rivet City".

They then said goodbye and headed in opposite directions.

* * *

><p>An hour later, at noon, Billy arrived at Rivet City. The first place he headed was the hotel. Within minutes he had gotten a room. Figuring he had time to spare, he went down to the Muddy Rudder to get a nuka cola and chat it up with any caravaners that happened to be passing through. When he walked in, he was greeted with the smell of alcohol and a small grunt that might have been "Hi" from the bouncer. Not many people were in the bar at this time of day, and it was almost erriely quiet. He sat down and ordered a nuka cola, hoping that it would stay that quiet.<p>

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Thomas was at the gate of the Citadel, talking to the guard and the robot next to him.<p>

"So, why is that robot there?"

"Why do you think?"

"I dunno. That's why I'm asking you."

"*sigh* The Sentry Bot is there to blast anyone who thinks he could take us on."

"Then why do you have those guys over there with the rocket launchers?"

"Becau—

"Or those snipers on the roof?"

"A—

"Or that big lazer hose strapped to your back?"

The guard was getting annoyed. "Have you ever seen a Super Mutant before, kid?"

"No. Sounds scary. Are there a lot of them?"

Just then, the gate opened, and another Power Armor clad person came out. "Shift's over. Back inside Glade."

Glade nodded, said a quick thanks and walked into the gate, which closed behind him.

Thomas asked the new guard what a Super Mutant was.

Even through the mask, Thomas could hear the man's disbelief. "You haven't killed a Frankenstein yet?"

"No. I did kill a Deathclaw though. Are Super Mutants like Deathclaws?"

The man was silent for a moment. "…Let me get this straight: You have killed a Deathclaw, something that could kill 30 of our men easy, and yet you haven't even seen any Super Mutants, which this city is literally _infested_ with. Is that correct?" A nod.

"How'd you kill it?"

"Blew up a car, caused a domino like explosion."

The guard's tone changed ever so slightly. Admiration, maybe? "Wow. For someone who has never even seen a Super Mutant… Even _I'm_ impressed. You wanna know how to kill mutants? Keep thinking like that. A word of advice: A weapon is not a weapon. It is a tool. The mind is the thing that turns it into a weapon. The mind is a weapon, and the most powerful one out there. The mind can turn anything into a weapon. Anyone who says otherwise will die quickly. Understand?"

Thomas nodded.

"Good. Go defuse another bomb or something."

Thomas turned around and started to walk when something hit him. "How—

"Ever listen to the radio? Defusing a nuke isn't the most discreet of things. Now get going. Wasting time can be deadly. Wasting mine can be worse."

Thomas nodded and set off, thinking about the guard's words. It only occurred to him half an hour later that he never got the guard's name. He shrugged and moved on.

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><p>Billy, 5 hours later was still at the bar. 5 hours worth of empty cola bottles were next to him. The bar was beginning to become crowded, and it wasn't even sundown. He reckoned that if he had not had so much caffeine, he would have had a splitting headache by now. In the dim light, he made out a figure entering and sitting next to him, a middle aged man, wearing a RobCo jumpsuit.<p>

"Hey, man," Billy greeted. "You new around these parts? I've never seen you before."

The man shrugged. "You could say that. I haven't set foot on this ship for years…"

"Then why are you back here?"

The man seemed to ponder something for a moment. "Have you ever heard of a Dr. Li, Mr…"

"Creel, Billy Creel." Billy and the man shook hands. "And, last I heard, there was a Doctor Li around here. Maybe around the front of the ship?"

"Thanks," said the man, who started to rise. Billy stopped him. "Whoa, why are you leaving so soon?"

"I have some business I need to take care of. I've waited too long."

Billy raised an eyebrow. "Business? I hope you don't mean to hurt anybody."

The man shook his head. "No. Actually, on the contrary. I'm working on something that could help everybody. I cannot do it alone, however. Dr. Li was an old collogue of mine."

"Are you a scientist, Mr.…?"

"James. Call me James. And yes, I am."

"You don't get too many of those folk around here. Did you hear how Megaton's nuke was difused?"

That piqued James' interest. "No. Who did it?"

"Someone from the Vault nearby. 101 I think." James' eyes widened.

"That's… That is _impossible_…" James looked as if someone had just told him that he was actually Jesus, or something like that. "What was this Vault Dweller like?"

"Blonde hair, hazel eyes, a bit naive at times, but a good kid. I think he is 18 or so. Smart, willing to help. Was looking for his dad."

"What was his name?"

"Thomas, I think." At that, James uttered a curse, barely heard over the loud, drunken voices of other patrons.

"I thought I told him to stay… To not follow me."

"You're his father, I take it." Billy looked back that the man's jumpsuit, realizing that, no, it wasn't a Robco. It was a Vault Jumpsuit.

"Yes. Mr. Creel, do you know where he is now?"

"Why yes. He's heading towards GNR, looking for you." James frowned at the prospect of his son going deeper into the city. "Hey, I've seen the kid fight. He can take care of himself."

"Ever seen him kill a Super Mutant?" James muttered.

"No. I don't even think he even has a clue of what they are." James' frown deepened. "However, he did take on a group of mercs like they were nothing." Sure, Billy was sugar coating it a bit, to assure James that his son would be ok. Then he remembered something.

"Oh yeah! He also killed a Deathclaw."

The entire bar became silent.

"Who killed a Deathclaw?" a patron asked.

James stared down in disbelief. "My son, who hasn't been out of the Vault for a _week_, has killed a Deathclaw."

"Yep. Saw it myself. Don't worry, your son will be fine."

"I'll say!" someone yelled. "He killed a Deathclaw! I'll bet he's the same one who saved Megaton!" The rest of the bar murmured their agreements.

Everyone suddenly wanted to buy "that Deathclaw killing, bomb defusing" kid's father a drink, to which he politely declined, instead asking where Li was. After finding out, he got up and shook Billy's hand. "It's been nice talking to you Mr. Creel. I hope to see you again."

"Same here, doc."

"Can you do one thing for me though? When you see my son again, please tell him to go to Megaton and stay there. Can you do that for me?"

"Sure."

"Thank you."

* * *

><p>Thomas looked back at his Pip Boy. He was almost at Farragut Metro Station, according to some signs. It was there he would get into the tunnels and take them all the way to Chevy Chase, which was very near GNR.<p>

He found it after a couple more minutes of walking and marked it on his map. Staring closer at his map, he realized something. He only had to swim across the Potomac and head East from Megaton, and he would have been here! Deciding that Billy must have had a good reason for not doing so, Thomas walked into the Metro, feeling apprehensive about finding his Father, and finding out why he had left. Oh, and the telling him that he killed a Deathclaw.

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><p><strong>And it's finished! Wow, this is my first chapter over 2000 words! I was just going to write 1000 and be done with it, but once I started writing, I couldn't stop. Only took me a few hours to write this. I'm getting better!<strong>

**Once again, sorry for the delay. I will not let that happen again! I'm going to have to make myself write a chapter every 2 weeks or something. Some regularity would be nice, you know?**

**Why did I put that I don't own Half Life in the disclaimer? Well, you've clearly never played the second one, then.**

**Oh, and sorry if there's a few errors. My beta was unable to betaread this chapter. She's still done more than enough for this story already though. Many thanks to her.**

**Also, thank you to everyone who takes the 5 seconds to review. You have no idea how much that helps. So, thank you Sonatore, CommandoCucumber, AKDyadyaVasya, .here, and thomasquwack! Whether it was pointing out my shortcomings or laughing at Butch being, well, Butch, you have all helped. Thank you all.**

**(Wow, aren't A/N's ****_supposed_**** to be short?)**


	10. Bow Wow

**Hi. Sorry that this took awhile. My muse wasn't speaking to me. Karma Police fixed that.**

**Now, folks, time for the disclaimer!**

**DISCLAIMER: No.**

**Wait, what?**

**DISCLAIMER: No.**

**Aww crap, it's broken!*sigh* Well, I guess I'll have to post it at the end. Enjoy**

**DISCLAIMER: No.**

**Will you stop that?!**

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><p>Thomas looked at his Pip Boy again, which told him that an hour had passed, and that it was still night. Back in the day, these tunnels had been used by all to get to work, school, or wherever they needed to be. Trains sped people beneath the crowded city, making what would be a 2 hour commute by car a short 10 or 20 minutes at most. Now, Thomas mused, all those trains were doing was slowing him down. Said trains were blocking every path he tried so far. His Pip Boy, however seemed to realize when a path was blocked and made a new one. Unfortunately, all the paths were dead ends, and he was now <em>lost<em>. The machine was leading him in circles. He felt like he had passed the same escalators ten times, and the radio channel it put on really wasn't helping.

He looked around the tunnel he found himself in, incase he missed something earlier. He was just about to give up when a man sized hole in the wall caught his eye. Unlike the others, this actually seemed to go somewhere. Thomas walked through it and found himself in what looked to be a closet. A door was right ahead of him, but that wasn't what caught his eye.

It was the messily painted arrow with "GNR Outpost" above it that did. Thanking God, the former vault dweller walked through it.

After a few more hours of walking, jumping, hopping over traps, rummaging through cola machines, tapping to some spiffy songs, listening to some advice on how to deal with Raiders, and more walking, Thomas finally found himself at the entrance to the Chevy Chase. After climbing up the broken escalators into the heart of the once great city, something caught his eye. This thing looked like a man, but was two heads taller than a man and as thick as a car. It had yellow skin and bulging muscles. Thomas realized what it was.

"A super mutant…" he breathed.

"WHAT?! WHO SAID DAT?" yelled the mutant, turning around. Thomas remained frozen on the spot. It saw him.

"A HUMAN!" it yelled, and pulled a rifle off its back. Thomas' eyes widened, and he turned around and leaped down the stairs as the shot rang out. He landed awkwardly on the 7th step, and fell, rolling down a few more. Within seconds he was up and at the bottom of the stairs, rifle clutched shakily in his hands, crouching behind the things that separated the different escalators. "HA! PUNY HUMAN SCARED!"

Yes, he thought. Very. Suddenly, he heard someone yell, "Mutant!"

Thomas heard shots being fired, and saw flashes of red over his head.

"Kid, come on out!" Thomas walked back up the stairs and was greeted with the very welcome sight of a squad of Brotherhood soliders.

"Hey kid," said one of the helmeted warriors. "You ok?"

"Yes, thank you. Do any of you know how to get to Galaxy News Radio?"

The blond haired woman who Thomas guessed who was in charge stepped forward.

"That's where we are heading now. We need to help our brothers stationed there."

"Can I come along?"

"What, are you kidding me? You looked like you've never seen a Super Mutant before!" chimed in one in the back.

"I haven't. That was the first one." He said, pointing to the ash pile that used to be a thing that used to be a man.

"Yeah, sorry kid," said the blonde. "Too dangerous for civis. You"

"But I've killed a Deathclaw!" The woman's eye's widened, and he could hear a few murmurs from the group. A couple of them started clapping.

"Um, wow." The woman looked unsure for a moment. "Fine. Just don't get in our way, or—

"YAY! Thank you, armor lady."

"It's Sentinel Lyons. Never call me that again."

"Aye aye, sir." Thomas gave a mock salute, and got an eye roll from the Sentinel.

"Alright," she said, turning to her men. "Move out!"

* * *

><p>Billy walked over to the counter and sat down, ordering a bowl of Sugar Bombs. As he was waiting, he spotted someone sit down out of the corner of his eye.<p>

"Hello again, Mr. Creel," said Thomas' father.

"Howdy."

"Has my son arrived yet?"

"I believe not."

"Do you know the memorial nearby?"

"Jefferson's? Yeah. What about it."

"Well," he began, "back in the day, I worked on a project there. It was abandoned when Thomas was born, but I want to finish what I started."

Billy raised an eyebrow. "Why are you telling me this?"

"The memorial is where the project was located. Unfortunately, it is now occupied by Super Mutants."

"And since you're a scientist, you want me to go in there and evict those Mutants?"

"Well, I'm not too bad with a gun, but I'd get murdered if I went in there alone. You seem like an able gunslinger."

"So what's in it for me?"

James shrugged. "The satisfaction of know that you played a major role in helping people?"

Billy grinned. "You sure know how to make a deal."

* * *

><p>The group ran out of the alleyway into what used to be a playground. Two mutants in the windows of the ruins in front of them opened fire upon them, forcing the paladins to stop and shoot back. Thomas slid behind a car that some idiot drove into the playground and peeked over the side, bullets kicking up the dirt where he just was a second before. While the paladins were busy taking out the ones in the windows, 3 more were coming out of the door, armed with hunting and assault rifles, and heading towards him. Oh shit.<p>

Thomas realized just what he was taking cover behind, and took a grenade from his belt. Pulling the pin, he dropped it on the car and sprinted towards the Brotherhood's soldiers.

"Fire in the hole!" he said as he dived into the dirt and shielded his head.

In what seemed like a split second later, the grenade exploded, with the car following suit, wiping the Super Mutants off the face of the Earth. The soldiers wasted no time in running into the what could only be a school, cutting through them like knives through butter. Thomas ran after them, taking shots when he could, trying not to trip over all the desks and bodies. Within minutes, they had gotten to the GNR Courtyard, where more Super Mutants were exchanging fire with a group of Brotherhood. Thomas could see a few dead soldiers. Lyon's group quickly cleared the area. The Sentinel told her men to make sure it was secure and to collect the dogtags of the fallen.

Thomas noticed a body near the statue, next to a weapon that looked way to big for a human being to carry. Ignoring the humongous weapon, he said a small prayer, took the dog tags off, and handed them to the Sentinel who just nodded and bowed her head in respect for her fallen comrade. Thomas followed suit. He was just about to say something to lighten the mood (maybe comment on how the buses blocked off the street) when his thoughts were interrupted by a yell, a loud roar, and a crash.

Thomas looked up and saw a behemoth of a Super Mutant swatting aside a paladin with a fire hydrant like she was a fly and the hydrant a fly swatter. Thomas stepped back as Sentinel Lyons ran across the Courtyard, opening fire with her laser rifle. The mutant was barely fazed, instead focusing on the Vaultie and stomping towards him.

Acting almost on instinct, Thomas pulled out a grenade, pulled the pin, and lobbed it as hard as he could in the beast's direction. It instead bounced off the statue separating the mutant and him, doing jack squat to prevent the mutant from killing—

The grenade went off, detonating the nine miniature Thermonuclear Bombs the Fat Man was holding, destroying the Behemoth, the statue, and sending and sending Thomas flying into the wall behind him.

He was knocked out instantly.

* * *

><p>He opened his eyes, but could only see black. Was he blind? He bolted up, ignoring the piercing headache he had and looked around. No, he wasn't blind. He was in a dark room (barracks, maybe?) with a few other sleeping paladins. He looked at his Pip Boy. Almost midnight, same day.<p>

Wait, what happened? A subway, a big mutant man, a Lyon…

"Oh yeah!" he said aloud.

This earned him a boot getting thrown at him by one of the paladins, mumbling something about sleeping.

His curious side kicking in, he got up from the bed quietly, and moved to the door quieter than a fox, a skill honed by the many nights of him sneaking out and going to the Vault library. Peaking out the door, he saw a couple of paladins standing watch at the foot of some stairs. Closing the door behind him, he walked into the room. One of the paladins pointed upstairs. Before Thomas could ask him to clarify, he said, "Three Dog, the DJ, wants you." Thomas nodded and took the stairs two at a time, yet still quietly. He was in "sneak out at midnight to do a random thing and don't get caught by dad" mode.

His head still hurt though.

He came into a large room. Fancy looking equipment lined one wall, while junk was piled on one small desk, probably taken from the school across the street. Scribbled notes were on one wall, with a few childish drawings thumbtacked on another.

The most noticeable thing in the room was not the drawings, nor the equipment. Indeed, the most interesting thing was not a thing, but a person, who stepped out of the shadows, wearing a head wrap and sunglasses even though it was night.

"The look on your face says it all. You're wondering who the heck this guy is and why you should even care. Well, prepare to be enlightened."

Thomas raised an eyebrow.

"I'm Three Dog- bow wow-, jockey of disks and teller of truths. Lord and master of the finest radio station to grace the Wastes. Galaxy News Radio."

Thomas was just about to introduce himself to the man, but Three Dog already knew what he was going to say.

"And you, well… I know who you are. Leaving the Vault, diffusing atom bombs, and wandering the wastes like a lone ranger… Just like dear old dad, hmm?" Thomas nodded. "Met him already."

Thomas was amazed. "Your that guy from the radio…"

"Yep!" Three Dog replied, giggling. "Guilty as charged! I usually don't get this kind of exposure to the public. It is nice to know that someone's listening. Make fighting the Good Fight a whole lot easier."

The piqued Thomas' interest. "Good Fight? What's that all about?"

"Well I'm glad you asked! Imagine a picture, okay? A picture of the Capital Wasteland. All that brick and rock. A whole lotta nothing, right?" Thomas nodded.

"There's people out there trying to just barely make it by day from day, fighting just to stay alive and make something of what they got. But then you've got all kinds of shit, like the Super Mutants, who all want a slice of the pie too, and aim to take it by force. Now, alone I can't do much. However—

"With this radio station, you can broadcast hope throughout the wastes," Thomas finished.

"Well Ho-Lee-SHIT! Aren't you a chip off the ol' block!" Thomas shrugged.

"Well," Three Dog mused. "Your father wasn't quite a lonesome wanderer of the wastes, killing deathclaws and behemoths, now was he?"

"WAIT A MINUTE!" the DJ said suddenly. "That's perfect!" The man practically skipped over to the mess of a desk and started rummaging through the piles of stuff on it. After a few moments of searching, he just shoved everything off the desk in frustration, clearly not being able to find what he was looking for.

"Need help?" Thomas asked, still a bit confused.

"Nah, I'm sure I must've…" he trailed off mid-sentence and opened one of the drawers on the desk, pulling out a small book (a journal, maybe?) and opened it.

"Oh." With that he found a random page and scribbled down something Thomas couldn't see. He slammed the book shut and put it back on the desk.

"So, you want to find your Dad, eh?" Thomas nodded. "Well, there is one rule in the Good Fight: You want help, you gotta contribute!"

Oh no. Stop it good nature. Don—

"Whatever I can do to help!"

DAMNIT!

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><p><strong>And that's the end of it folks! Sorry it took me so long to get this out. Between the Hurricane and helping people who have been affected by said Hurricane, I've been busy.<strong>

**Wow, another 2000 word chapter! That's going to be my standard from now on! Since I don't have school for the next 4 days, I'll probably be able to get out another chapter.**

**So stay tuned, folks!**

**~Thomas**


	11. A Name

**HELLO READERS! I'm sorry this has taken so long! I have been sick recently. Oh, and some other things.**

**I am, in fact, fairly chipper considering everything…**

**Oh, and guys? Please review, if you can. Makes me know that someone is reading, and in turn that motivates my lazy butt into writing! Not that it's a threat or something…**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN FALLOUT. GET IT OUT OF YOUR BRAINS!**

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><p>Thomas walked out the door of the GNR radio station, walking towards his next objective.<p>

Oh, and off a 5 foot ledge, landing face first on an old desk. But doesn't that go without saying?

Groaning, Thomas got up and looked around. The tunnel he would need to use to get to the Mall was nearby, but he couldn't see it yet. Too dark. Thomas could see the outline of a few people wandering about aimlessly. He found it strange, considering that it was night, and fairly chill on that particular night.

"Hey!" he yelled, walking towards the closest of the silhouettes. The figure turned around, and let out a growl that stopped the Vaultie in his tracks.

People didn't growl. Normal, healthy, _sane_ people didn't growl.

"Um, hello?" Thomas asked again, this time with fear in his voice. The thing stepped towards him, growling fiercer. Suddenly, it leapt at him, arms outstretched, as if ready to claw him. Without thinking, Thomas punched it in the face, his fist connecting with

the tattered face. The thing stumbled back a few feet, then straightened up and let out another growl, as if to proclaim, "Its on".

Before the monster could make another attack, however, Thomas had drawn his pistol.

Three _crack_s filled the night, and the thing had three pieces of lead in his chest. it stopped growling and swayed for a moment. It then collapsed to the ground.

Thomas flicked on his light and approached the thing cautiously. It looked sorta like the bartender, what was his name… Gob! It looked like him, with the decayed face. Gob didn't growl or attack him though. Maybe this one went crazy? Not all ghouls were like this, Gob was proof of that.

Two more growls were heard from behind him. Turning around, Thomas saw a glowing ghoul accompanied by one wearing pieces of body armor. The Pip Boy's Geiger counter told Thomas that one of them was emitting radiation (probably the one that was freaking _glowing_).

"Yippie," said Thomas sarcastically.

* * *

><p>"So doc, I assume you guys are the reason that a famous monument dedicated to the man who wrote the principals of our country has all those pipes sticking out?"<p>

"Yep," James answered Billy, his voice not without a bit of pride. "Imagine the look on Thomas' face when he finds that we took back the place where he was born."

Billy raised an eyebrow. "He was born here? I thought he was born in the Vault."

"He wasn't, although he grew up thinking that."

"I thought 101 never opened."

"That's what the Overseer said too. He was wrong." The doctor paused.

"Look, I'll tell you the story later, over a beer," said James.

"Well, I don't drink alcohol."

"Phew, I don't have to pretend to drink and then give it to the guy next to me again," James joked.

"Well doc, I think we've got a memorial to liberate."

"And a few super mutant's bullets to catch. Come on," the doctor ordered as he picked up the battered hunting rifle, which was the only thing he could afford in Rivet City with the meager amount of cash he had kept stashed in the frame of the bible passage.

The duo walked forward, guns at the ready.

"Look over there, mutie on the roof," James pointed out.

"Already saw him." Billy raised his .44, then frowned. "Can I, uh, see your rifle for a bit?" The doctor obliged, since he couldn't hit a target at that range if his life depended on it.

Like a professional, the pseudo-cowboy raised the hunting rifle to his shoulder and fired.

A hundred yards away, the super mutant's head exploded, and his body fell down to the scaffolding below. James noticed with amusement that Billy's hand went down for a moment, as if he was using a lever action.

"Nice shot, Creel. You use repeaters a lot? Because that's not how you use a bolt action."

Billy clacked the bolt. "Shut up," he said jokingly. "Lets go, even those idiots would have heard that.

The two ran to the building just as a super mutant carrying a minigun burst through a door on the base of the memorial.

"RAUGH!" It yelled as it saw the duo. James heard the dreadful _whir_ring of the chaingun's motor, and dived behind a pipe, with Billy following suit. Bullets flew out of the spinning barrels fast enough to almost seem like one sound, and loud enough to make a persons ears bleed. James could hear the bullets ricocheting off the pipe.

After a few seconds of this, the gunfire stopped abruptly.

"Gah! STUPID MACH-

The mutant's head exploded mid-sentence, courtesy of Billy's revolver.

He and James walked into the wide open door, finding themselves in a hallway. James checked his Pip Boy.

"This thing says that there is 2 up here somewhere and two in the basement."

"Right," said Billy, reloading. "I'll get the ones in the basement while you get the ones up here, then come down and help." Without waiting for an answer, the cowboy ran ahead.

James followed, walking slowly. He turned the corner, and saw nothing but old lab equipment. Seeing it brang back old memories of working on the project, of Caroline-

_Now is not the time to go for a stroll down memory lane_, the doctor chided himself.

He moved forward, opening the door to the rotunda, and saw a flash of yellow to his left. Surprised, they both shot, James' bullet hitting the super mutants head while his hit the doorframe to the right of the doctor.

"That was close," breathed the scientist. Hearing a roar behind him, he turned backwards and stumbled into the rotunda, just narrowly avoiding a sledgehammer to the head. James then fired, shot missing the mutant by several feet, then dodged another swing of the hammer. He cringed as he saw the railing bend from the hit. He clacked the bolt and fired again, this time hitting the mutant in the arm, causing it to yelp in pain and drop the hammer. Seeing his chance, James brought the rifle to bear, loading another bullet into the chamber, and fired for the third time. This time, the mutant's skull exploded through the back of his head, killing him instantly.

James stood still for a moment, adrenaline wearing off.

"That was a close one…," he said.

* * *

><p>Thomas stood at the vending machine, looking in delight at it. Man, was he thirsty after fighting off a horde of those feral people, and he was covered in some green goop that the glowing one threw at him. He had gotten it off, but a faint headache and his Pip Boy told him that it was a bit irradiated. So, yeah, he probably deserved a little pick me up.<p>

Looking around the collapsed car tunnel, he espied a briefcase lying on the hood of a car. Walking over to it and opening it, he found a wallet with a few bills. Grinning, he walked back to the vending machine.

Of course, this one was one of the older models that didn't take fives. Sighing in frustration, Thomas walked back to the briefcase. He _really_ wanted a Nuka Cola. Maybe there was some pocket change in here.

A thing of bobby pin caught his eye. Grinning once again, he picked them up. Now all he needed was a screwdriver, and he could pick himself a soda. Conveniently, the briefcase also held that too, and within a minute had a few Nuka Colas to drink.

Walking forward with soda in hand, he came across a door with a helpful "to the Mall" arrow pointing to it. Opening it, he immediately heard the ticking of his Geiger counter. He walked in the hallway, finding a few leaking radioactive waste barrels to be the culprit.

"Nobody could bother to move these?" Thomas said to noone, and he put his soda down. He cracked his knuckles and got behind one of the barrels, pushing it into the car tunnel, and pushed it out of the way. He then repeated the process with the others. By the end of it, he was exhausted. However, he had to keep going. Drinking the last of the soda, he walked on, walking through an office and into a catwalk with a gate on it and a gas leak on the other side. Shaking the gate to see if it was locked, he heard a growl on the other side, and was surprised to see another one of those ghouls gone mad crashing into the fence, clawing at the gate. Thomas stepped back into the office.

He did _not_ want to deal with those things right now. His bones were starting to ache, his head was already aching, and the caffeine had not worked it's wonders yet.

Something on the desk caught his eye. Walking over to it, he picked up what looked to be a boxy pistol. "AEP 7" was stamped on the bottom.

This was a laser pistol, Thomas realized. Turning to the snarling ghoul, he fired it into the gas, igniting it and burning the ghoul. The terrible smell of burnt flesh filled the air, along with the ghoul's pained cries.

After the creature was officially a burnt piece of toast, Thomas picked the gate's lock, and moved forward, trying not to look at the grisly sight.

* * *

><p>At dawn, as he walked out of a metro station into the Mall, the ache in his bones was still there, along with it's best friend, headache, and he was still tired as all hell.<p>

At least there were two Brotherhood guys waiting for him at the top of the escalators.

"Are you the Lone Wanderer?" One of the paladin's asked.

"Lone Wanderer? Who's that?"

"That Vault kid that's been running around, diffusing nukes and killing Deathclaws. It's what Three Dog calls him," said a slightly higher voice.

Thomas had a nickname now? YES!

"Yes, I'm him."

"Good," said the first, and probably older, one. "Now, we've been assigned to protect you on the way to the museum. I'll explain the rest you when we are there. Follow me, and keep your damn head down. Even though this is when the muties change shifts, there is still plenty of 'em out there." Thomas nodded and followed the two Paladins as they went along the street, quickly and quietly.

The three stopped at a corner about a minute later.

"Look," said the older one, "The Museum is right around the corner. However, it's crawling with more muties than Satan's asshole. You'll have to sneak in and grab the dish." The paladin handed Thomas a hand-sized device with what looked like a mini satalite dish on top and a belt on the bottom. It read "STEALTH BOY: One use only. Made by Robco."

"Use it to sneak in there. You have ten minutes of invisibility, be out here by nine. If you break it, take it off as soon as possible so you don't get rad poisoning."

"Ok," said the Lone Wanderer, strapping the Stealth Boy to his wrist and activating it.

Eleven minutes later, the Lone Wanderer was running out of the doors of the museum, dish in hand, Stealth Boy broken, and Super Mutants shooting at him.

"Get that dish repaired! The boys at the WM will let you in! We'll cover you!" Yelled the younger paladin as Thomas barreled past them.

He leapt over the trenches and a few of their occupants as he raced to the Monument. A few mutants decided to join in on the "shoot at Thomas" game. The Paladins guarding the gate saw him from afar, and opened the gate. Muttering a quick 'thanks' as he raced past, he ran inside with the gate closing behind him. He walked into the giant white building, walked into the elevator and pressed the up button. The elevator jolted back to life, and started to slowly move upwards, making an inconsistent ticking noise.

"Aww crap," said Thomas, who had forgotten that the Stealth Boy leaked radiation. Taking it off, he waited till he was at the top, then threw it into a corner. He then turned his attention to the view.

And, my god was it a view. He could practically see for MILES! Across from him was the Capitol building, and in between the Capitol and the Monument were a lot of tiny yellow men, getting lasered by little metal men. It looked pretty…

Wait, what? Thomas slapped himself, and focused on the task at hand. Walking over to the terminal, he checked the options. The only one there was, "Perform repairs." He pressed the enter button, and saw the thing holding the old dish move forward, to the right, and into the window so that the repairman wouldn't have to climb out and risk his life to repair it. How smart.

There was little left of the old dish, just a few wires hanging out and a little of the actually dish part. Removing the junk, he threw it in the corner and installed the Virgo dish.

Walking back to the computer, he pressed the only option (Repairs Complete) and went down the elevator. Those Brotherhood probably needed his help fending off the mutants. Besides, the adrenaline had worn off and the ache was returning.

Once the Lone Wanderer reached the ground, he ran out of the gate and took cover behind a rock, taking out his R-91.

"You, Wanderer! Go and flank them while we supress!" said one Paladin. Thomas nodded and ran to do just that.

Going a bit down the road and down into the trenches, Thomas was suddenly hit with a massive wave of nausea. Stumbling down the trench, he saw a mutant and tried to raise his rifle. He felt to weak too, and dropped it, and fell to the ground. He fell unconscious just as the mutant was turning towards him.

* * *

><p><strong>And it's finished! Finally! Now for the next chapter. Hopefully I can post it before the end of the week.<strong>

**Thank you for reading, and please review if you can.**


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